Sensor systems are usually made up of a sensor unit, a sensor data conditioning system, and a communication interface. These sensor units are, in general, coupled to one another by way of wire connections. Provision is made for future sensor systems to be equipped as modular assemblies with automatic adaptation to the central control units. These sensor systems must enable interference-proof and radiation-free communication between individual sensors and a control device.
German Patent Application No. DE 100 48 808 describes a method and an apparatus for controlling operational sequences, in particular in a vehicle, at least one sensor having a connection unit being connected, via a bus system, to at least one control unit in order to control the operational sequences. This control unit likewise has a connection unit through which the sensor data are transferred to the control unit. Provision is further made that the control unit reads in and/or processes the sensor data at predefinable synchronization points.
A method and an assemblage for initializing a number of similar secondary control devices is described in German Patent Application No. DE 199 46 769. Here the similar secondary control devices are connected downstream from a primary control device. In the method, the secondary control devices are connected to a controllable voltage supply for the primary control device. Identification signals are then transmitted from each secondary control device to the primary control device. An initialization of a secondary control device that is yet to be initialized is accomplished by maintaining the voltage supply of the secondary control device to be initialized while simultaneously interrupting the voltage supply for the other secondary control devices. An initialization signal is transferred in each case from the primary control device to the secondary control device that is to be initialized.
An electronic system and a method for addressing devices is described in German Patent Application No. DE 101 38 121. A first bus system that is based on static addresses, as well as a second bus system that is based, upon an initialization, on addresses to be assigned dynamically, is provided here. Static addresses are furthermore allocated to the second bus system. This system has means for transforming a dynamic address into a quasi-static address, the quasi-static address encompassing the static addresses allocated to the second bus system.